SHIMANO FISH
Shimano Miravel Threadline
Miravel is an all-new concept in the Shimano spinning reel range, setting the benchmark for an affordable, quality, and super-lightweight spinning reel. Building on the foundations of Nasci FC, Miravel utilises a CI4+ body and side plate for significant weight reductions. Shimano's cold-forged Hagane Gear reel technology provides Miravel with unparalleled gear durability. With premium performance at the forefront of design, Silent Drive –the same technology found in Shimano's flagship Stella range –features in Miravel. This technology translates into smoother operation due to finer gear tolerances, less vibration and improved longevity. Purpose-built for finesse fishing in both freshwater and inshore saltwater environments, Miravel is backed by Shimano's Core Protect water repellent technology which increases durability and water resistance without creating a heavy winding feeling. Additionally, a screw in handle design has been adopted for added strength and convenience. Featuring 5+1 bearings, the Miravel has been engineered for anglers who want increased performance in a lightweight package. RRP From: $219.00
Shimano Exsence Strong Assassin
Exsence Strong Assassin is a Japanese designed 125mm 25g floating jerkbait. Featuring a through-wire design and heavy-duty hardware, the Strong Assassin is perfect for a range of Australian species including barramundi, coral trout, jacks, flathead and pelagics. Embracing Shimano’s Boost Concept, Exsence Strong Assassin features three of Shimano’s key lure technologies to maximise appeal and performance. A Flash Boost body integrates a mirrored insert within the lure’s body structure, providing a continuous internal reflection of light and UV. This is amplified by a counter weighted spring mechanism which ensures that vibration is maintained even when the lure is paused, continuing to invite fish between movements. The Jet Boost spring loaded weight harnesses the centrifugal force of casting, boosting both distance and accuracy, allowing the lure to access difficult to reach areas. For the ultimate natural appeal, Shimano’s signature Scale Boost finish provides a life-like holographic pattern to emulate the brilliance of scales on the side of a bait fish. The Exsence Strong Assassin comes pre-rigged with size 2 treble hooks. Available in 8 colours across baitfish and high contrast patterns. RRP from: $36.99
Shimano TCurve Surf
TCurve needs no introduction in Australian sportfishing and now the iconic rod name extends to an all-new Surf series. The TCurve Surf series has been meticulously designed to suit Australian surf fishing styles and techniques. The dedicated beach and rock line-up includes long casting, lure, bait and slide baiting specific actions and tapers. By utilising Shimano’s legendary TC4 blank construction, the Surf series builds on TCurve's legacy of extremely durable, lightweight, and super sensitive rods. As Shimano Australia's top-tier surf rod range, hard-wearing Fuji reel seats and quality Fuji Alconite guides have been utilised across all models for uncompromising durability. Additionally, a tough and light cross weave slimline grip section features on the TCurve Surf for years of dependable service in the suds. The TCurve Surf series is available from 9-foot through to 15-foot in spin, overhead and slide baiting configurations. RRP: $419 to $649
Shimano Expride Rods
The new generation of Expride is a lure-specific rod range designed to cover some of the most advanced fishing styles. Expride utilises Shimano's exclusive Hi-Power X carbon wrapped blank construction for fine-tuned rod actions, with models specifically designed for versatility, power fishing or throwing swimbaits, while also providing anglers with enhanced casting distance and accuracy. The innovative and lightweight carbon monocoque butt increases lure vibration transfer through the rod and into an angler's hand for up to 30% more sensitivity. Additionally, high grade cork has been incorporated into the grip assembly for better feel and increased bite transmission. Extremely light weight with excellent balance in the hand, the new Expride rods feature CI4+ reel seats and quality Fuji SiC guides for premium angling performance and increased durability. As a dedicated lure casting range, hook keepers have also been included for added convenience. Expride enables discerning lure anglers to explore new fishing styles, with 12 two-piece models hand selected across spin and baitcast configurations covering actions across ultra-light (UL) to extra-heavy (XH). RRP from: $419.00
Shimano Packable Fishing Spray Jacket
Shimano’s brand new, packable spray jacket is rated to 10,000mm water resistance, developed by the team in Australia to keep keen anglers protected in wet conditions whilst fishing. The windproof design is lightweight and easily packs down into a bag to be stored in your favourite fishing backpack or thrown under the seat of your car or tinny. The Shimano packable spray jacket is constructed from polyester material and uses premium YKK zips with corrosive resistant nylon teeth. The inner torso and hood are lined with breathable material for comfort, with cleverly placed ventilation points under the armpits to keep cool. The design features adjustable velcro cuffs and elastic cords integrated into the hood and hem to help anglers stay dry. The design also integrates reflective rear shoulder panels to catch the eye when out on the water. Available in charcoal grey and sizes S-3XL.RRP from: $89.99
Shimano TranX 150
The Shimano TranX 150 is a compact version of the popular TranX 200 and 300 size saltwater rated Shimano baitcaster reels. Designed with saltwater use in mind, they feature Core Protect, Hagane body and 3+1 shielded anti-rust bearings.
The Core Protect feature ensures ultra-smooth winding while minimising saltwater intrusion into the reel’s internals. The TranX 150 utilises the reliable SVS cast control braking system with an external adjustment wheel on the palming side-plate for maximum casting control. All the critical components are held precisely in rigid alignment by a durable Hagane aluminium chassis to resist flexing when under extreme pressure.
The reel on assessment is the 7.2:1 HG model and, being a compact 150 size, weighs just 190 grams and sits nicely in the hand. Spool capacity is 135m of 20 pound Power Pro braid line. The cross carbon drag is rated to 5kg.
In the field, all areas of mechanical operation were faultless: the thumbar spool release transitions in and out with a reassuring, positive click. Winding is a particularly smooth experience even in the absence of micro module gearing which is now being commonly included on many other comparable Shimano baitcast reel models, while the use of oversize paddles is welcomed.
THE CROCODILE COAST – A NOVEL BY DICK EUSSEN
When people turn 80 years old, most are content to sit back and relax, but prolific author and bush writer/photographer and NAFA OUTDOORS 4WD Editor Dick Eussen has published his second novel The Crocodile Coast, a 280-page fictional piece set around the fishing village of Karumba in the Gulf country.
This is a novel about a Mafia crime lord and his criminal cartel who operate out of Karumba and control the commercial fishing industry as a cover for their smuggling, kidnapping and drug operations.
People are murdered, or vanish, in suspicious circumstances if they know too much. Deep undercover Police Sergeant, Bill Madsen, is sent to Karumba to destroy the ‘Barra Mafia,’ as the gang is known.
The Crocodile Coast is not for the meek; it has graphic language, sex and violence. It is fictional adventure reading for those looking for a pure Australiana bush novel that sets no limits and ignores the political correctness that plagues modern writers today.
“Switching from factual writing to fiction was not easy,” said Dick. “It’s a huge step in another direction. In my travels across tropical Australia, I heard many a strange tale and experienced adventures, some that border on fiction, others based on pub lore, some not, so I mixed the lot into a barrel and came up with a bush novel that is loosely based on some of the characters I met in the tropics and elsewhere.”
The Crocodile Coast is available from bookshops or online direct from publisher, Greg Barron, along with his bush novels on www.ozbookstore.com.au
They are also available as a kindle ebook.
JM Gillies
COVERT SERIES SPINNERBAIT
The Booyah Night Time Covert Series spinnerbaits are the ideal option for night time fishing. The unique head design is modified from a traditional Booyah spinnerbait head with a raked out gill which offsets the blade torque to keep the bait running true.
Featuring black and red skirt colours, as well as a high-quality Hildebrant blade, this spinnerbait is truly a game changer for the angler looking for an edge once the sun goes down.
Available in two colours and two sizes: 1/2oz – 125mm, #5 Hilderbrant Blade and 3/4oz – 125mm, #6 Hilderbrant Blade.
NEW BLUEWATER TACKLE STORAGE
JM Gillies has a new range of tackle and gear storage products under the Bluewater brand.
Drift Series Tackle Trays
Make your fishing expedition a great experience with the Bluewater Fishing line-up. Colour code and organize your tackle with these trays so you can get to the right tray quickly while you’re on your fishing adventure. Store all your bait in one very convenien. The Bluewater Fishing Drift Series Tackle Trays will go great with the Tackle Bags or Sling Packs.
The 3500 series has 2 main compartments that can be divided up into 10 compartments.
Dimensions of each tray are: 23cm x 13cm x 3cm.
The 3600 series has 3 main compartments that can be divided up into 18 compartments. Dimensions of each tray are: 27cm x 18cm x 4cm.
Both series come in green, blue, orange and pink with the clear divider inserts.
The Bluewater 3600 Drift Series.
Drift Series 3600 Sling Pack
With its easy access compartment and extremely rugged wear-resistant 1680D construction, the Bluewater Drift Series Tackle Sling Packs deliver quality with functionality. The Sling Pack design allows you to carry all your fishing essentials on your back while giving you the convenience of being able to swing your gear to the front when needed.
NEW BOMBER NATIVE SERIES LURES
Bomber Model A
If you are limited to just one crankbait, you would do well making it a Model A. This crankbait is a staple for avid fishermen, and its timeless design, durability, true-running dependability and pure fish-catching abilities define the meaning of “go-to lure.”
· Excellent multi-species lure.
· True-running dependability.
· Proven durability.
The lure comes in two sizes:
· 2 1/8″ ~ 54mm. Suited to dive to depth 6-8ft trolling. Weight 3/8oz.
· 2 5/8″ ~ 66mm / Suited to dive to depth 8-10ft trolling. Weight 1/2oz.
Bomber Model Deep Flat A
The Bomber Deep Flat A flat-sided crankbait produces a tight swimming action and a subtle presentation that’s perfect for cool water and when lethargic fish won’t chase lures. The Deep Flat A is similar to a lipless crankbait, but provides far more versatility in retrieves. Suspended fish can be particularly hard-headed and the near-neutral buoyancy of the Flat A gives you the ability to precisely target fish suspending at specific depths.
· Flat-sided crankbait.
· Reliable durability.
· Tournament-proven success.
Size: 2 1/2″ ~ 63mm. Suited to dive to depth 12-15ft trolling. Weight 3/8oz.
BOMBER MODEL FAT FREE SHAD – due in stores late July 2023
The Bomber Fat Free Shad is a flat-sided and deep-diving crankbait with realistic colours and eyes. It’s the crank that revolutionised the industry and brought flat-sided baits to the mainstream.
With an enticing tight action, the Fat Free Shad is responsive with an ease of retrieve never before seen in a bait of its size and running depth. The Bomber Fat Free Shad features the latest advances in colour and reflectivity, realistic 3D eyes.
Size: 3″ ~ 75mm. Suited to dive to depth 12-16ft trolling. Weight 1oz.
Reidy’s lures
Akame Guppy
The Guppy is a weedless paddle tail soft plastic that features a segmented tail reinforced by a Kevlar weave to enhance durability while allowing maximum freedom of movement via the paddle tail. Each single lure is packaged with a heavy-duty weighted VMC worm hook.
The Guppy 120 weighs 17 grams and is available in 11 colours. An unrigged Guppy is also available in a twin pack without hooks. Two new models, 85mm and a 150mm sizes, are arriving soon. It is recommended that these baits are not mixed with other types of soft plastic lures.
Akame Hybrid
Like the Guppy, the Hybrid soft plastic also features a segmented tail reinforced by a Kevlar weave to enhance durability while allowing maximum freedom of movement. The Hybrid’s unique shape allows it to be fished in multiple ways: either as a prawn gliding through the water or flicking along the bottom while the paddle type tail allows it to glide enticingly on descent. The Hybrid comes in 4 sizes: 60 (9 grams), 90 (9 grams), 120 (17 grams) and 150mm (27 grams). There are currently 10 colours available in each size and we are waiting for a new “Karen’s Pearl” colour to arrive. All sizes in single packs are pre-rigged with VMC weighted worm hooks and in twin packs without hooks. These lures have had good success on barra, flathead and pelagics in the north and brown and rainbow trout in the south.
Akame Leafz Flutter Jigs
The Akame Leafz are a slow pitch or flutter style lead jig. They are fitted with heavy duty assist hooks. These jigs are perfect for targeting reef dwelling monsters. Flutter jigs come in 8 sizes (20, 40, 60, 80, 100, 120, 160 and 200 grams) fitted with twin swing hooks and 7 colours. This product has been aired on the Merv Hughes fishing show series 8 (current series) seen on 7 Mate on Sundays or view episodes on 7Plus by searching Merv Hughes Fishing and series 8.
Wilson Fishing
Zerek Fish Trap (new Colour)
A new Zerek Fish Trap colour, “Anita”, has arrived. Colour AN (Anita) is a black Fish Trap with highlight, UV-active yellow tail and pectoral fins. We’ve also included a UV-active eye as well.
Anita was designed by the Anita Barra boys, Liam Robinson and James Wilson, two of the best barra anglers going around. We asked Liam and James the reasons behind the colour and they said: “We based AN off the Sunset colour (straight black with UV eye), which has been one of, if not our most successful colour at night.
“But during the day we got more bites with Black Jack (BJ) or Red Devil (RD), so we thought a bit of contrast in the day will help to trigger the barra to bite a bit better.
“We’ve also noticed that juvenile bony bream have a translucent/yellow tail, so we included that as well in our initial design. “With the help of the team at Wilson Fishing and Kord, we massaged the original concept to create AN and we are so excited to fish it this year,” finished the boys.
Available now in the 78mm, 95mm and 110mm sizes.
Venom Target Series Rods
Ensuring you're on target was the design parameter for the new Wilsons Venom Target series. Accurate casting has become increasingly important in hard-fished waters and, with the use of live sonar technology on the increase, casting accuracy in lakes and dams has never been so important. These rods are designed with a hand and a half butt arrangement to allow for easy underhand casting if anglers are pitching lures 'on the scope' or flinging them underneath overhanging mangroves. The hand and a half butt also allows for two-handed overhand casting if distance is required.
The Target series features a full EVA rear grip for scoping anglers and trollers.
There are three models in the Venom Target range that are all 6'5" long: RLFVT1 (10-30lb), RLFVT2 (20-40lb and the RLFVT3 (30-60lb).
NAVICO GROUP
NEW FROM NAVICO GROUP - JL Audio Mediamaster® 105 Marine Source Units
The all-new MM105 benefits from Bluetooth® 5.0 with Qualcomm’s aptX™ technology, to reproduce music streamed from smartphones with the highest possible quality.
The MM105 is a premium, full-featured source unit that boasts a sleek, weatherproof (IP67
rated) chassis, and an ultra-bright, full-colour display offering outstanding visibility, even in bright sunshine with selectable day/night display mode. For maximum versatility, the MM105 is also NMEA 2000® Certified and compatible with onboard multi-function displays (MFDs) from Lowrance, Simrad, B&G, and others with NMEA 2000®.
The MediaMaster® 105 dispenses with on-board amplifiers in favour of an audiophile-quality preamp output architecture, for use with JL Audio marine amplifiers.
Features of the MM105
• 4 audio zones with top-quality pre-amp outputs (4V RMS) for left, right and subwoofer.
• Each audio zone offers 3 level control modes (Relative, Absolute, Fixed or Off)
• Each audio zone offers its own tone (bass, midrange, and treble) and balance controls
• DAB+, HD Radio® (services subject to local availability) and AM/FM tuners with 24 presets across all tuners/bands
• Bluetooth® Streaming with advanced Qualcomm® aptX™ audio codec
• Dual rear USB 2.0 inputs with power for charging (USB1: 1 A / USB2: 500 mA)
• Dual rear analog AUX inputs with RCA connections (2V/1V RMS Input Sensitivity)
• NMEA 2000 network port, for connection to MFD’s
• IP67 rated and built to withstand the elements
NAVICO – LOWRANCE
Lowrance® App Releases a New Update Packed with Features
Lowrance has recently pushed out an update to its Lowrance App including satellite view capability, weather overlay, track sharing and personalised push notifications. The update adds even more functionality to the app that connects your smart phone with Lowrance fishfinders and chartplotters.
The Lowrance app now offers satellite overlay view for premium subscribers, enhancing situational awareness with the option to choose between full view or land-only. In addition, users can select the transparency level of the layer.
Another popular update for anglers is the weather overlay on the charts, which includes data such as pressure, precipitation, air temperature, wind and gust. During route planning, users can see what weather is predicted at a specific time and location during the route, opting for the weather overlay either from main charts or during route creation.
“Our weather and satellite overlay add another layer of information for anglers using the Lowrance app,” said Lucas Steward, EVP of Lowrance. “We’ve also added in the ability for notifications, sharing with friends across various apps and, particularly useful for saltwater anglers, the new anchor alert feature.”
When anchoring, premium users can set their location using GPS and create a geo-fence around their boat, which will trigger push notifications and sound an alarm, when the boat moves out of that location, a very reassuring feature for when anglers may be busy or sleeping on their boat.
Other enhancements include the ability to share tracks with friends in other applications (i.e. Facebook, WhatsApp, Text), sending and receiving referral invitations to the app and push notifications for key events like weather-related alerts. Notifications can be easily turned on and off by category in your settings.
The Lowrance App is free to download and offers free up-to-date and detailed nautical charts from C-MAP®, creation and management of all your personal waypoints, routes and tracks, along with the latest marine weather, important points of interest and much more. It’s available on both the Apple Store for iOS and Google Play for Android.
C-MAP App Now Available Worldwide with Crowd-Sourced Genesis Layer
C-MAP, a leader in digital marine cartography and cloud-based mapping, has made its crowd-sourced mapping data called “Genesis” available on the C-MAP navigation app, as well as on Lowrance, B&G and Simrad apps powered by C-MAP charts.
The Genesis layer allows all users across the world the ability to see C-MAP’s extensive crowd-sourced database of marine mapping data that has been reviewed and quality controlled by C-MAP engineers before being published to the public as an option to view on the app’s charts. The addition of Genesis on the C-MAP App is another enhancement that allows users to get the best possible mapping information so they can fish better.
The Genesis layer itself adds more than 30,000 submissions to C-MAP charts and can be especially useful for small, inland lakes where government cartography agencies have not reached or have not updated official data for decades. The U.S. and Nordic regions, in particular, have been very active in user-generated mapping data and upload, although sonar logs have been submitted from over 80 countries since its inception providing a big global footprint.
“Genesis has been around for many years but getting this directly in the hands of boater’s smartphones was a key step in taking advantage of this crowd-sourced data,” said Max Cecchini, Executive Vice President, C-MAP.
“Adding this layer as a simple toggle on your smartphone app whether that’s the C-MAP, Simrad, Lowrance or B&G App is an option that will benefit all boaters.”
User uploads to Genesis have logged nearly 1 million total hours on the water over the past half decade to supplement official charting data provided by government bathymetric agencies across the world.
Also added to the C-MAP App is a promotional referral program which provides six months of free high-resolution bathymetry to any user across the world that refers three new users to the C-MAP App or apps from Simrad, Lowrance or B&G that sync with their on-board displays including chartplotters and fishfinders. To refer friends, simply share your unique link from the dropdown in the main menu, and choose how you want to share (via Social Media, WhatsApp, text message, etc.). You'll automatically receive your six months of free HRB when three friends install the App.
